


Alone

by Breagen



Category: League of Legends
Genre: F/F, F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-06-04
Updated: 2021-02-13
Packaged: 2021-03-03 22:35:01
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 4
Words: 7,812
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24543166
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Breagen/pseuds/Breagen
Summary: The life of the queen of the North was a mixture of everything. There were moments when she thought that she was the luckiest woman but on the other hand, there were days when everything seemed to be off. Unexpected, her life crumbled, everything that she loved was gone. What remained?
Relationships: Ashe/Katarina Du Couteau, Ashe/Tryndamere (League of Legends), Katarina Du Couteau/Garen Crownguard
Comments: 5
Kudos: 24





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

  * For [xNekorux](https://archiveofourown.org/users/xNekorux/gifts).



> Her, it's my gift for xNekorux's birthday.  
> I hope you'll enjoy that short story.
> 
> Link to the xNekorux's profile (if someone doesn't know her => she's one of the greatest ff authors I have encountered, and have a pleasure to read):  
> https://archiveofourown.org/users/xNekorux

When Ashe opened her eyes, she felt lost. The white-haired queen woke up in a room filled with darkness. She was sitting on a chair; her hands were cuffed. Her entire frame was tied to the furniture preventing the queen from moving even for a single inch. After a few seconds, she felt immense pain. The source of the pounding sensation was her forehead. With every passing moment, the pain was more and more difficult to ignore. The Freljord’s queen tried to focus, tried to figure out how to break or loosen the biding bounds, how to escape. With all the might she could muster, she pulled the cuffs. The try was futile. If it was possible, the ties stack even firmer. She hadn’t expected that to work. It would be all too easy. Ashe allowed herself to sigh and wait for a couple of seconds before she tried again. The white-haired woman gritted her teeth during the attempt, focusing all the remaining strengths towards her wrists. Suddenly, the new wave of pain struck her. The scream couldn’t have been muffed in time. She screamed at the top of her lungs. The pain was immense as if someone or something was cutting her with knife piece by piece. The queen of the north could feel the blood leaking from the wounds on her wrists. Immediately she felt weaker as if the blood loss lasted not seconds but minutes or even longer. Her breath was shallow, she was exhausted, her heart was pounding like a bell. Within moments, she blacked out.

The sounds of footsteps nearby woke the queen up. The dream she woken up from was horrible. Maybe it was just a nightmare, but it felt so real. Ashe’s clothes were sticking to her body. She was entirely covered in sweat. Its smell hit her nostrils a moment later. With every passing moment, the sound of firm footsteps was closer and closer. After a minute or so, the door leading the room was opened. The slim ray of bright light appeared in the darkness. In the doorway stood a woman, but the white-haired couldn’t describe her with details. For her, she was just a shadow with the curves of a woman. Soon after the opening of the door, she heard the snap of the finger. Out of nowhere, the room she was held captive was filled with light that was blinding her.

“My, my, my,” the stranger started in a low tone. “Look at you, the mighty queen of the north tied down to a chair,” she chuckled. “You’re waiting like a lamb prepared for slaughter, you know?”

“Who are you? Where am I?” Ashe asked. A fraction of her panic could be heard in her voice.

“Oh … I’m more than sure that you know who I am,” came the response followed by another chuckle. “Pardon, it’s rude of me not to come close, maybe it will help you identify me.”

The woman closed the distance between them in a matter of a few firm steps. She put her hands on the cuffs, lowered herself, stared straight into the eyes of the tied-down queen. The oppressor's hair was bloody-red, her face had noble features, her lips were pink and kissable twisted into the smirk. Her eyes were of the color of the cleanest emerald, they were intoxicating. It took Ashe a moment or two to notice the most important details of the woman’s face. There was a scare that was passing through the right eyes of the redhead. At that very moment, there was no more doubt in the queen’s mind. In front of her, Katarina Du Couteau was standing. So, in the end, it was not a dream, it was not a nightmare, it was a reality.

“What do you want from me, scum!” The white-haired woman growled.

“My, my, my, you really called me a scum? I freed you from your burden,” the redhead smiled mischievously.

“You killed my husband, you killed my guards, you killed my people!” The queen shouted.

“Do you want me to kill you too?” Katarina asked, lowering herself even more. “Did you really love him, or was it all just a political pact that gave you the throne?”

“I swore before my gods that I will bear his children and that I will rule fairly. You destroyed all of it,” the white-haired queen spat.

“Do you know that he had lovers in nearly every village in your oh so precious kingdom?” The assassin asked in a whisper-like tone.

“You are lying!”

“Am I? Think about it for a second, at least, would it explain why he was leaving the capital so often?”

“He was a king, his deeds forced him to leave.”

“Cutie, it’s all lies,” the redhead chuckled. “He was seeing many women, some of them are even pregnant now. Have you ever wondered why some part of the royal treasury got lost? I know the answer, and you won’t like it. He used it to pay those women, to secure them right living conditions.”

“Haven’t you hurt me enough yet?” Ashe asked. “Why are you telling me all of this, why are you trying to convince me that he was cheating on me?”

“You’re a pretty, little thing, queen,” Katarina started. “You know that?”

“What do you mean?”

“Oh … come on,” the assassin giggled while leaning in. “ You’re a very unique woman ... at least, for me.”

“You … you destroyed my life. Why did you do that?” The white-haired mumbled.

“There are many reasons …” the assassin whispered. “The first one, the most obvious one, it was a direct order.”

“Pfff, I don’t believe it,” Ashe replied.

“You don’t need to. The more important question is whether it changes anything at all?”

“You’re going to kill me, right?”

“Only if you really want me to do so,” Katarina responded and flashed a shy smile.

“You’re sick,” the queen spat. “What were the other reasons?”

“Hmm … I see the way he treated you … and I think he didn’t truly know what a treasure he had so close to him. Long story short, I killed him because of the way he cheated on you.”

“Are you going to just fall down to your knees and tell me how much you value me, how much you love me? You’re pathetic, you had no right to take my life away from me.”

“Maybe … maybe not. We’ll see, but for now, it’s clear to me that you don’t want to live without your husband, who was just a piece of shit. Do you really want to lose your life because of him?” Katarina whispered directly into the ear of the tied down woman. “Or maybe, you want me to tell you what the situation really looked like?”

“I have nothing but the time, at least for now. Tell me everything,” Ashe ordered.

“As you wish, cutie,” the assassin chuckled. “Where should I begin?”

“As always, from the very beginning,” the queen responded in a cold voice.

“Ahhh, don’t use that voice on me,” the redhead replied. “It only makes it more difficult for me to focus on the story. It’s just turning me on. It’s so intoxicating.”

“You’re joking, right?”

“Nope, I mean what I said.”

“And it seems that this situation is getting weirder and weirder, apparently.”

“I told you, you’re unique to me,” the Noxian soldier provided a response.

“Get back to the main topic, can you?”

“Gash, sometimes you’re no fun at all,” Katarina started. “But, fine. I was deployed at Freljord.”

“What for?”

“You know that those pieces of information are top secret?” The redhead chuckled.

“Katarina!”

“Fine, fine. As you can see, you’re affecting me too much,” the assassin joked. “The main goal of that mission was to create some havoc in your capital. But, in fact, it was more. I was to leave a trail that would put the blame on Ionia.”

“You’re obviously lying,” the white-haired summed up latter’s statement.

“How do you know that? Why are you so sure?”

“First of all, you wouldn’t be sent alone. Secondly, the very moment you would tell the truth, your commanders would know that, and I’m pretty sure they would be displeased.”

“Look at you, Ashe, the queen, the smart-ass,” Katarina responded ironically.

“I was right, wasn’t I?”

“You have a point,” the emerald-eyed beauty admitted. “I’m here just because of you.”

“What do you want from me?”

“You should already know what I want,” the assassin whispered, leaning in even more.

“You want me solely for yourself?”

“Bingo, I want you, and I always get what I want.”

“You have your opportunity, I can’t move.”

“Let me give you a sample. I won’t hurt you, I did what I did just because I needed to.”

Katarina didn’t waste any time. As soon as her last words were said, she sat on the queen’s laps and cupped the white-haired chin. She leaned in, but the moment the distance between their lips was pretty much none-existing, the assassin hesitated. It was a completely new sensation to the redhead. She had never hesitated before. After all, her life was kinda simple. All she had to was to obey orders. But, this time, it felt different. Maybe for the first time in her life, Katarina had a choice, she could do whatever she wanted. To some extent, it terrified her.

“I knew you were a coward,” the white-haired woman spat.

“I … I’m not a coward,” the assassin replied, but there was none confidence in her voice.

“Yeah, like I would believe you.”

It hurt, the simple sentence hurt her. Ashe was right. In fact, Katarina Du Couteau was a coward. All her life, the redhead was shielding herself by the orders. The young woman wasn’t thinking who she was about to kill, someone marked that person as a target, so the marked one must die. To be perfectly honest, it was that simple.

“I thought that you and that Demacian brute had a thing, or did I receive the wrong info?” The tied-down woman asked suddenly.

“It was all fake,” the latter responded. “I secluded him cause I needed particular information.”

“What info?”

“About you, about your land about your people.”

“You seem obsessed with me. Should I be flattered, or should I start worrying about my life?”

“As I said, I’m not going to kill you, I don’t want to,” the emerald-eyed woman sighed. “Look, me and Garen were never a thing. I kissed him, I let him believe that I care about him only because I needed something from him. Or to be more specific, I wanted something that his family possessed.”

“You stole the dagger that sealed the demon that was living in my husband, did I guess it?”

“It seems that your people were telling the truth that you more than just a pretty face. Not that I doubt that, but still, I’m impressed,” the blood-haired woman admitted.

“You must have been planning that for a long time,” Ashe said in a low tone.

“Months, maybe even more. I needed every single part of my plan to be flawless. There was no room for an error.”

“You do you,” the queen sighed. “You want to kiss me, go ahead, I’m not even able to prevent you from doing so.”

Something inside the mind of the assassin clicked. She was still just a mere millimetres away from the delicious looking lips of the queen. Katarina licked her dry lips before finally vanishing that none-existing gap. The redhead started with a small peck. As soon as he planted it, she backed off, seeking the reaction. To her utter surprise, nearly instantly, she spotted that the white-haired bit her lower lip and closed her eyes. The queen looked so innocent, so precious, it was driving the blood-haired woman insane. But, it was also turning her on as well. Without much thinking, she leaned in again. This time, she let the kiss last longer. Katarina was so shocked when the tied-down woman returned the action. The assassin licked the lower lip of the latter, asking for permission. Unexpectedly, it was swiftly granted.

The queen tried to get as close to the Noxian as she possibly could. It didn’t make any sense, but she enjoyed the sensation, she truly loved the kiss they were sharing. It was intoxicating, the more it lasted, the more she wanted. Damned be the cuffs, damned be the ropes, all she wanted in that very moment was to hold the woman who destroyed her life in her arms. She wanted to kiss her, maybe even more than that.

“Untie me, untie me, or I’m going to go insane,” the moan-like words escaped the throat of the white-haired woman.

“You want that, or you want me to untie you to give you a chance to escape?”

“Kiss me, and then decide,” Ashe moaned.

“What changed your mind? Merely a moment ago, you didn’t even want to talk to me, or kiss me.”

“It seemed that you’re indeed intoxicating for me,” the queen replied. “Don’t get me wrong, I’m still mad at you that you did all of that to capture my attention, but later you can prove that you aren’t lying.”

“Later?”

“For now, I want another kiss, and then another, and so on and on,” the white-haired giggled. “Show me what you got, Miss Du Couteau.”

“I’ll be my pleasure,” Katarina responded, capturing the sweet lips of Ashe. “Will you all me to make you feel good?”

“Haha … of course, but for now, behave and obey my orders. And I order you to kiss your queen the best you can.”

“Yes … I would love to.”


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey, one of the readers asked me to continue the story so time ago.  
> To be frank, I was not entirely sure whether I should do it, or not, but I feel like the first chapter was not that good, and there is still a lot of room to improve the story. So, I'm going to write a few additional chapters.
> 
> 19.07.2020 - I'm posting the first page of the 2nd chapter.  
> 21.07.2020 - Finished :)
> 
> I think that the next chapter will be My home is where my heart lies, then I would like to either complete The rise of the Blood Moons' servants or Black diamond. What would you want me to write?

As soon as the ties were lifted from her, the queen felt whole again. The bloody-haired woman that stood right in front of her was smiling openly. Her breath was quickened, her entire frame trembling slightly out of the pure excitement. The visible lust filled the eyes of the assassin, making it all too easy to interpret what was on her mind. The white-haired saw it in an instant. She made sure to make a mental note for the future. The very moment, the Noxian soldier decided to lean it, the archer stopped her with a single sentence.

“Would you like to receive a show, miss Du Couteau?” she asked smoothly.

“What kind of a show we’re talking about … miss Queen?” the blood-haired woman wanted to know.

“Would you mind us to reverse positions for a start?” the snow-haired queen asked with a small smile while softly touching the left arm of the latter. “You seem a bit tense … maybe … maybe, I could give you a massage?”

“Hmmm … it sounds nice actually,” the assassin hummed. “But … you can still perform it while I’m on top, don’t you?”

“I don’t think so, dear,” Ashe replied swiftly. “I want you to feel that good that you will close your eyes, and focus entirely on the sensation of the massage.”

“Why are you so determined to have it your way?”

“Is it so bad that I want to help you relax after a tiring day?” the white-haired woman whispered sensually. “Is it that bad?”

“Ehhh … I think … I mean … no, it isn’t,” Katarina mumbled.

“So? Let’s switch, and then, I can start helping you properly,” the queen added.

“Yes … I want you to,” the assassin replied.

In a matter of few brief moments, Ashe straddled the legs of the latter. Her firm hands were immediately put on the shoulders of Katarina. Without much effort, the white-haired woman managed to unbuckle the straps of the armour. The straps were covering a plain shirt that was patched at least a few times. Still, the queen found holes in it. Quite fortunately, in the places where she wanted them to be. Without much thinking, she started to add some pressure onto the latter’s soft flesh. The badly muffed growl that escaped the throat of Katarina proved her thought, the assassin’s muscles were still tensed. Keeping useful information in mind, she began a massage.

As time passed, the growls, hisses, and quiet curses went silent, and their place was taken by soft moans. The very moment, Ashe heard Katarina moaned for the first time, she smiled. Everything was going according to her hastily and a quite risky plan. It was just a matter of time, and she would succeed.

Just like she had thought, it didn’t take much of her effort to make Katarina close her eyes. It was like a few tense minutes, and then, the assassin relaxed completely, allowing the white-haired to perform her magic onto her.

The queen was quick to notice the change in Katarina’s behaviour, she flashed a soft smile again, then reached out for the ties that not so long ago were used on her. Without a single moment of hesitation, she started proceeding with her plan. With a mischievous smile on her pretty face, the ties were being slowly tightened around the wrists of the latter. Even though Ashe was not wasting any time at all, it didn’t mean that she was in a hurry. The white-haired queen took her sweet time performing the action. Above everything, she made sure that the blood-haired woman that she was straddling felt comfortable and relaxed.

To be perfectly honest, everything would go according to the plan if not for a brief moment of indecisiveness. It happened exactly when the final tie was to be finalised. It was so stupid, so reckless of her, Ashe got impatient. With a bit of worry visible on the pretty face of the young queen, she saw as the emerald eyes of the assassin opened instantly. The white-haired didn’t say a thing, she just kept staring in those beautiful eyes, as if they were made of some sort of a gemstone. To be frank, they were intoxicating to Ashe, sadly, she noticed it too late. In those orbs, the surprise, the question, the unbelief could have been seen. It was not a very difficult task to recognise what sort of thoughts were currently filling the mind of the Noxian soldier.

“Ehhh …” the emerald-eyed beauty sighed heavily. “I see that it was all just a trap. It was just all a fake for me to lower my guar, wasn’t it?” the Noxian assassin asked in a natural tone.

“I … I …” the queen started to mumble for a short moment. “No … I really enjoyed the kiss we shared, but ..."

"But what? What do you want to say?"

“I am a queen before a woman,” the white-haired whispered, suddenly feeling that her plan was not so perfect as she thought. “No matter … no matter what feelings you woke up in me, my first responsibility is to take care of my land, to take care of my people.”

“Ahhh … I wouldn’t think of you any other way,” the tied woman responded. “Even though you knew about your husband’s cheats, you stayed with him to protect your people, didn’t you?”

“Am I that easy to read?” the queen asked in a low tone as if she was embarrassed.

“Possibly … but it didn’t mean that it’s a bad thing … you know?” Katarina replied.

“How so?” the white-haired woman wanted to know. “I am a ruler of Freljord, my intentions must not be easily readable for anyone,” Ashe stated.

“It’s a truth, but everyone, or at least most of the people are predictable to some extent,” the emerald-haired woman provided an answer. “You know, it isn’t that bad, you’re clearly giving vibes of a woman of a ruler that is willing to sacrifice a lot for its nation,” Katarina flashed out a small smile.

“You are mistaken in that case, don’t you see it?” the woman of the clear-blue-skies-eyes replied in an instant.

“Correct me then … my queen,” the Noxian soldier said with a quick wink.

“My role … no, the role of every single living monarch or any kind of ruler is to take care of its people, but we can not show it in public,” the white-haired rose her voice slightly. “My … our weakness are those who we want to protect. It is so easy to threaten the ruler just by the decimation of its subjects.”

“Hmm … it seems that I hit in your soft spot … I’m sorry,” the blood-haired woman apologised. “Still, I think that you’re overthinking things too much. Look, not all of the rulers in the world are caring for their subjects. You’re right that if you show that you care for your people, someone can use you it against you, but…”

“But what?” Ashe interrupted.

“But … in the very end, it doesn’t matter,” Katarina said softly. “It’s just a relationship that works both ways.”

“Explain!” the queen ordered, raising her voice once again.

“It’s just so simple,” the assassin chuckled. “You want them to be safe, they want you to be safe. There will never be an agreement in that very case, you just need to learn to live with that. If some of your enemies tried to kill your people to soften you up, they’d just sacrifice themselves. They’d do it cause they know that you need time to prepare all that would be required to avenge them,” the emerald-eyed beauty explained. “Look, it’s just that simple, but it seems that you don’t want to accept that. You don’t want anyone to sacrifice for you, to be in pain because of you, am I right?”

“Ehhh … you are,” the queen confessed.

“It wasn’t that difficult, was it?” the assassin flashed out a broad smile. “But … maybe we should change a topic? You tied me down for some reasons, you want to know something. Or you have some sensual fantasies in that pretty head of yours that includes me?” the blood-haired giggled.

“You … you … you are impossible to deal with,” Freljord’s ruler mumbled, blushing incredibly hard.

“Oh … is it a red I see on your face?” the tied down woman teased. “Maybe, I was right to some extent in the end. Or at least your actions give those kinds of vibes,” the emerald-eyed beauty chuckled.

“Agghhh … stop it … I just wanted to know the whole story from your perspective,” Ashe murmured quietly. “That’s all.”

“Hmm … I think you’ve skipped one incredible crucial part in that plan of yours,” the Noxian assassin giggled.

“What have I skipped?”

“What would I have from it?”

“What do you want, then?”

“You … all of you,” Katarina replied in an instant.

“I should have known better not to ask that question,” the white-haired giggled slightly. “Fine … I will allow us to be lovers, but there is one requirement that you need to fulfil.”

“What requirement it is?” the assassin wanted to know.

“You will need to wait for me for some time, and we will go public with our romance,” the archer-queen provided her answer.

“Wouldn’t it be more dangerous to you?” the soldier asked with concern in her voice.

“It might be more dangerous, but it is the only way I can prevent my council from offering my hand, my body to another ruler or leader for some kind of benefits,” the ruler answered with a deep sigh. “If you want to be with me, you must do it publicly, you must marry me.”

“The requirements seem to be acceptable. I’d say that I thought that you’ll require me to do something completely different.”

“What did you think about?”

“It’d be a very long story, and it can be said in another time.”

“Fine, but I need to know everything that happened the day my husband died and everything that led to it,” the queen announced.

“I think it’s reasonable, so where do you want me to start?”

“From the very beginning,” the white-haired replied.

“That means?”

“Firstly explain what caused your attraction toward me.”

“Ah, ok. Would you mind untying me first?” Katarina asked.

“No, I would not be able to get your hands off of me. I think you would be pretty occupied with that, so you would not be able to tell me the story,” the blue-eyed woman explained.

“Oh, come on, I’m sure you wouldn’t mind me doing so,” the assassin pouted.

“I think I would not, but it is a question for another time,” Ashe giggled.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey, I'd love to present the 3rd chapter of the story.
> 
> It's just a short chapter for me to experiment a bit.
> 
> I hope you'll end up liking it :)  
> PS. My current plan for a couple of next weeks:  
> (it's very likely that I will rewrite the entire story, cause I feel like it needs it),  
> 3rd chapter of Kiss the Rain (it's possible that I will end up rewriting the 1rst chapter as well),  
> 4th chapter of Sometimes it's just better not to know,  
> 8th chapter of The rise of the Blood Moons' servants.
> 
> Then, I will probably rewrite one chapter of "My home is where my heart lies" and write 17th chapter of that story, but who knows.
> 
> PS.PS. If you have an idea that you would like to see me write, or want me to quicken the writing of any of my stories, feel free to write a comment :D
> 
> As always, till the next time, and thanks for everything.
> 
> 2020-12-03: a preview posted  
> 2020-12-04: a whole chapter posted

**_Flashbacks:_ **

* * *

“You’re daydreaming again, Sis?” the familiar voice of her adopted brother stirred Katarina out of her thoughts.

“Of course not,” the redhead scoffed, forcing herself to face Talon. “What do you want?” she asked in an annoyed tone.

“Hehe...” the man chuckled. “If you were listening to me even in the slightest margin, you wouldn’t have to ask,” he replied, shaking his head.

“Start talking already,” Katarina uttered in a bored tone. “I have better things to attend to.”

“Yeah... I’d assume that throwing the knives at that’s barbarian back out of your eyes is one of them,” the male assassin replied. “The second one... and probably more interesting to you, would be without an ounce of doubt checking out the so-called wife of the mentioned brute,” he added, smiling mischievously. “Did I get it right, Sis?”

“Get the fuck out of my face!” the blood-red-haired Noxian growled. “Do it if you really know what’s best for you,” she threatened.

“Oh,” Talon faked the gasp. “Who would have thought that the heartless assassin of Noxus would fall for the fairly innocent queen of Freljord,” he teased sarcastically. “Maybe... after all, you have a heart, you just don’t want to acknowledge it.”

“Will you willingly shut up, or do I have to force you to do so?” the best agent of Noxus spatted through her clenched teeth. “Beware of what you’re saying, or one of my knives could potentially find its way toward your throat!” she threatened.

“We both know that you don’t have guts to do so,” the adopted son of Du Couteau’s family bust into laughter. “It isn’t like the father always wants me to clean up the ‘ ** _mess_** ’ after you,” the man added.

“Highly doubtable,” the green-eyed woman scoffed, turning around. “I’m leaving,” she announced. “I don’t have time for those ‘ ** _games_** ’ of yours.”

With the conversation dealt with, the blood-red-haired woman headed toward her own quarters.

“Kat, Kat, Kat,” the man started to giggle. “What would you say if I offer to help you with the ‘ ** _problem_** ’ of yours?” he asked after a second or so.

“What?” the surprised woman asked, stopping. “What do you mean by that?”

“Curious, aren’t you, Sis?” Talon taunted.

“You don’t have any plan, you’re just playing with me, don’t you?”

“Oh, quite the opposite,” the man denied.

“Spill the bean, then!” the eldest daughter of Du Couteau’s house ordered.

“Come closer, please,” the male assassin asked in a polite tone. “I want you to tell me something before we’ll start to scheme.”

“Fine, but make it quick,” Katarina sighed, coming closer. “What do you want?” she asked in an annoyed tone as soon as she stopped next to her so-called ‘brother’.

“Take a close look at them,” the Blade’s Shadow uttered in a stoic tone, pointing out at the rulers of Freljord.

“Ashe and that brute Tryndamer, what’s more, to say about them?” the woman scoffed.

“The devil dwells in details, isn’t he?” the man allowed himself to chuckle a little. “Take a closer look, dear sister. I assure you, there is so much more you could learn from the scene taking part before your eyes,” he added.

“Fine,” Kat gave up, exhaling heavily.

The royal couple of Freljord was occupying the alcove just a couple of dozens of steps away from Du Couteau’s siblings. The defined, muscular frame of the barbaric king was covering most of his wife. Compared to Ashe, Tryndamer was standing, gesturing something intensively. Out of the distance, the redhead could not hear what were they talking about, but she got a feeling that the king’s back muscles were tensed.

“Are they arguing?” she asked Talon.

“Tell me what do you think, Sis,” the man replied.

“There’s no use of you,” the green-eyed woman nagged.

After a couple of extended moments, the black-haired man decided to sit on the chair located at Ashe’s left. His large fist hit the nearest wall just a second later. The queen, as it seemed, remained unimpressed by her husband’s action. Her trusted bow was lying on her laps with a single arrow already drawn. Even though she seemed to be calm, or at least it was the vibe she was giving from a distance, their conversation must have been a serious one. The queen turned her face slightly to the left to keep an eye-contact with the brute. They continued the talk, even though it was evident that it was getting on Tryndamer’s nerves.

As time passed by, the gesturing rate only increased, which was apparently not welcomed by the stern white-haired woman well. After what felt like ages, the black-haired brute tried to reach out with his right hand to stroke the cheek of his wife. Surprisingly, the woman had nothing of it. Without blinking, she slapped the firm hand of the man, abruptly standing up. Without sparing her so-called ‘husband’ even a single glance, she exited the alcove, no turning back once.

“Ouch,” Katarina commented on the scene. “It was definitely a fight.”

“What don’t you say, my dearest sister?” the son of Du Couteau’s house mocked.

“Fuck you!” the woman spatted. “Now… tell me, how this scene helps us – and by that, I mean me?” she wanted to know.

“Oh, sister. Isn’t it evident?” the man chuckled a little.

“Can you just answer my question for once?”

“Ehhh…” Talon faked the sigh. “If there’s a problem in their paradise, there must be a reason for it. All you need to do is to find it and then exploit, or as you prefer, use to your advantage,” she explained with a nasty smile playing on his thin lips.

“I’m starting to like your reasoning,” the emerald-eyed beauty admitted. “Tell me more, then,” she asked in a neutral tone.

“As you wish, my dearest sister,” the male assassin teased lightly.

**_Present:_ **

* * *

The emerald-eyed Noxian stopped, waiting for any reaction from her listener, and hopefully soon-lover.

“So it was you who stalked me from that point onward,” Ashe commented on Katarina’s story.

“It seems I was good enough for you to not find out that it was me,” the tied-down woman replied, flashing a smirk.

“Ehh,” the queen of Freljord sighed heavily. “I wouldn’t be so proud of myself if I were were currently,” she made a statement.

“Why tho?” the blood-red-haired assassin asked, smiling broadly. “I played my part pretty good if I may speak my mind.”

“Yeah… I should have expected you to be proud of things like that,” the white-haired beauty made a comment.

“Oh,” Kat said in a moan-like manner. “You look so freaking cute and hot when you’re confused,” she giggled a little.

“Shut up, Katarina!” Ashe growled at the tied-down woman. “You better use your infinite energy to tell the story. You’ve told me only a little.”

“Can I have at least some reward for my effort?” the assassin uttered playfully.

“Fine…” the young queen gave up, sighing once more. “But… don’t expect me to reward you every single time you finish a part of the story, am I clear?”

“Of course, baby,” Katarina replied seductively.

Ashe did not waste any time. She leaned in, capturing the plump lips of the Noxian within a heartbeat. It seemed that Katarina did not expect her to do so, because she did not return the kiss for a few moments. The white-haired woman allowed the kiss to last a moment longer before breaking it. As soon as she did it, the feared agent of Noxus bean pouting, clearly dissatisfied with the pleasure vanishing so soon. The ruler of Freljord offered one of her rare smirks to the blood-red-haired woman. The moment of breaking the kiss could not have been better, the internal thirst of the Noxian was just about to kick in, and regain control over the encounter.

“Enjoyed your reward, I assume?” Ashe teased clearly frustrated assassin.

“I thought that you’d let loose of the bondages, but you had something else on your mind, it seems that way,” the green-eyed beauty responded in a quiet tone. “Not that I didn’t like that, but it could have lasted a few moments more, you know.”

“You’d love for it to last forever probably,” the queen allowed herself to chuckle. “But… firstly, you need to work for it. There’s nothing free here,” she flashed another smirk.

“Fine, fine, fine,” Katarina sighed, giving up. “Let’s focus back on the story, shall we?”

“Of course, it’s the reason we’re here, after all, isn’t it?”

“When these bondages are out, I’ll choke you till you start enjoying it,” the Noxian spatted without thinking.

“Ohh… is that a promise, or offer?” the white-haired woman teased. “If it’s, I might reconsider it after our story-telling party here is over.”

“You… you… you… what?” the frustrated and surprised Katarina managed to gasp.

“Honey, the game of tease and playfulness is a game for two,” Ashe replied playfully. “In any given moment, I can start to flirt with you, only to see how do you react to it. For now… let’s call it boundary testing,” she provided a further explanation.

“You’re a whole package, it seems,” Katarina hummed under her breath.

“Oh… about that I can assure you,” the blue-eyed goddess uttered. “If I wasn’t, I wouldn’t be able to be a queen. You know, the mask must be always on.”

“I guess.”

“For now, let us come back to the story you were so fantastically telling. I’m thrilled to hear it to its end,” Ashe whispered her statement straight into the ears of Katarina.

“As you wish… my queen,” the assassin stuttered while the shivers ran down her spine.

“Wonderful… maybe if you keep up being such a good girl to me… I’ll reward you again,” the queen uttered in a soft tender tone.

“She’s going to be the death of me,” the Noxian thought immediately.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey, posting the next chapter of the story. Hope, you'll like it. However, if you don't, please let me know, so I can improve :)
> 
> PS. The whole chapter should be finished in the middle of the week.
> 
> As always, thanks for everything, and see you next time :D
> 
> PS. Sorry that it took so long ;(
> 
> Changelog:  
> 2021-02-07: A preview was posted.  
> 2021-02-13: A whole chapter posted.

**_Flashbacks:_ **

* * *

“Do remind me, why the fuck are we kneeling it that dirt, again?!” the annoyed and angry redhead hissed.

“Can you already stop nagging, sister?” Talon asked without sparing a single glance toward the eldest daughter of Du Couteau’s house. “I’ve told you the exact reason at least a thousand times already,” he added with a sigh.

“Can’t we just break into that stupid building?!” Katarina asked. “I bet there’s no one there who could match us.”

“It’s possible, but why do you want so badly to be in the spotlight?” the raven-haired man replied with the question of his own. “Look, I don’t have anything against bloodshed, but sometimes the goal can be achieved without it. And… frankly saying, I feel like it’s one of such cases,” the man tried to explain everything once again as calmly as he could.

“Bullshit!” the red-haired woman scoffed.

“Wait a little more, dearest sister. I’m more than sure that your blades will taste blood tonight,” Talon said before sighing.

“You better be right!” Katarina uttered in annoyance.

Her adoptive brother did not utter a single word more. His sight was fixated at the fort before them. Just mere dozens of steps were all that separated the Noxian assassin from the Demacian guards. Talon opted for the more risky approach, sneaking that close just to have a better view of the challenge standing right next to them. It meant that they ended up kneeling in the mud. A couple of past days were rainy. The usually dry surroundings of the fort became a swamp, at least temporarily.

Demacia was not known for maintaining outposts far from its homeland. However, in some situations, its rulers could be convinced that stretching the army’s supply lines could be beneficial. The fort ahead of them was a perfect example of such a situation. The dagger buried deep beneath the outpost was a weapon made with one thought in mind – to contain a darkin. For years, darkins were thought to be invincible. They could be wounded, harmed, but never truly killed. Discovery was made out of pure luck when the antique dagger was buried deep into the side of the darkin. Demacian who did it, could not contain his amusement when instead of a painful death, his opponent was sucked into the blade. Demacian nearly immediately wanted the entirety of the truth to be covered up. After all, such knowledge even though useful was dangerous. For such a weapon, many rulers would be more than willing to send their armies to conquer Demacia, to burn it to the ground in a search for the antique blade. It must be admitted, the people assigned to that operation did their work as well as they possibly could. However, it did not stop Talon from finding out.

“How did you even come into possession of such an intel?” Katarina asked after a couple of minutes of silence. Based on her voice tone, she calmed down, at least a little.

“Oh, it wouldn’t be a secret anymore if I told you, would it not?” Talon replied with a wide smirk glue to his handsome face. “I prefer to hold my cards hidden if you don’t mind, sister.”

“Jerk!” the redhead uttered in a low tone. “If you don’t want to spill the bean, fine, don’t talk. But, maybe do something before my patience run out completely!”

“You know what, dearest sister?” the raven-haired man hummed. “Sometimes, I really wonder how in the heavens you became one of the most successful assassins our nation produced,” he added, giggling. “Sometimes, it seems that even a fading blow of the wind could make you lose your patience. And… that’s not the greatest sign for the assassin.”

“Shut the fuck up, already!” the eldest daughter of Du Couteau’s family growled. “I can be impatient sometimes, but I make sure my job is done.”

“Oh,” Katarina’s adoptive brother chuckled. “As I’ve already mentioned, our father always sends me to clean up the ‘ ** _mess_** ’ after you. So, I’m not entirely sure whether I’m bought by your words,” he mocked.

“Fuck you, Talon!” Katarina uttered through the clenched teeth.

“Wouldn’t it be incest, dearest sister?” Talon allowed himself to giggle a little more. “But, whom am I to tell the great Katarina what to do,” he added sarcastically.

“I swear, I’ll eviscerate you the moment the dagger will be in my possession!” the red-haired woman threatened. “I’ll gut you!”

“Promises, promises,” the adoptive son of Du Couteau’s house continued to mock while standing up. “It’s high time for us to act. Or… you can spend the night in the mud. The choice is yours, dearest sister,” he added, offering Katarina a helping hand.

“It’s fucking about time!” the red-haired assassin growled but accepted the brother’s help.

In a span of the next few seconds, the Noxian’s pair vanished in the shadows.

**_Sometime later:_ **

* * *

All of Katarina’s clothing was wet, covered in the mixture of mud and something stinking. She hated that feeling, but nothing could be done with that. The eldest daughter of Du Couteau’s family hated helplessness, inactivity. To some extent, she wanted to shut down her mind. All she wanted was to have that damned weapon in her hands reach already. Still, for now, she opted to just follow her adoptive brother.

With every single passing moment, the temperature was going down and down. The heavy raindrops started to fall from the dark as oblivion skies once again. They were freezingly cold. The moment the first drop made contact with her exposed skin, the woman shudder, the unpleasant shiver ran down her spine. The whole situation was getting better and better, which was only making the redhead more frustrated. A silent curse soon escaped the woman’s throat.

“How long?” Katarina asked, seriously pissed off.

“Patience, dearest sister, patience,” Talon replied, not even sparing a glance toward the red-haired woman. “There is a canal beneath the fort. We should reach it in a couple of moments,” he added, still pressing forward.

“You’re leading us to the sewer, aren’t you?” ` ** _Sinister Blade_** ` asked bitingly. “Why the fuck do you care how many lives we’ll end up taking tonight? Is there some hot chick that you’ve been secretly meeting or stalking?!” she continued to nag, her voice filled with pure rage.

“I’d advise you to think about what you’re going to say at least twice before speaking up your mind!” Talon replied in a cold tone, emphasising every word. “You’re an assassin, not a mindless beast that kills without thinking!” he thundered. “If we killed all of the soldiers stationed here, there would be consequences, sever ones. Demacian won’t seek who stood behind the action, no, they’ll accuse Noxus. As much as you’d want to believe our rulers, this war has already taken a toll on us. Hundreds if not thousands are dead, more wounded, disabled, all thanks to that war!”

“Pfff!” Katarina scoffed. “We’re far stronger than Demacia. Maybe… what we’re going to do here tonight will finally push our nation toward the victory. After all, we’d love to have Demacians on our territory, bleeding out their far fewer forces,” she added confidently. “If they attacked us, it’d be a clear sign for our people that we need to destroy them before there’s peace!”

“You’re delusional if you think that we’re stronger than them,” the man chuckled, but there was none happiness in his voice. “We have numbers, far more soldiers that can be fielded, but the quality of our armies are far lesser than these of Demacia. Their soldiers are probably the best regular army that you can see all over Runeterra. I’d say that we’re more or less equal in overall strength. If it hasn’t been the case, the war would have been over by now. And… as you probably know, the finishing line of that madness was yet to be drawn!” ` ** _Blade’s Shadow_** ` explained.

“Ohh?” Katarina gasped ironically. “Who would have thought that Talon would be such a softy?” she mocked. “If you can’t handle the job you should…”

The man did not allow her to finish. Quicker than Katarina could react, he turned around, grabbed his adoptive sister by the neck, and slammed her into the mud. The dark-haired man leaned over the woman. There was no rage shown on his handsome face. Even though the redhead tried to rise up, she could not. Once again, she was reminded of the massive disparity in strength between them. Talon held her in the mud for a couple of moments longer before retreating his hand.

“I hope you’ve calmed down, at least a little,” ` ** _Blade’s Shadow`_** uttered, turning around.

“Fuck you, Talon!” the red-haired woman cursed through her clenched teeth. “The cost of getting these clothes clean is on you!” she added.

“Fine,” the dark-haired man replied, moving forward. “But for now, let’s focus on the task, shall we?”

“Fuck you! Do whatever you want!” the eldest daughter of the house replied, upset. Nevertheless, she followed her adoptive brother, grimacing every time the damp fabric contacted with her skin.

Surprisingly, they reached the canal’s entrance just a couple of minutes later. She should be thankful that her speculation turned out to be false. However, she was too prideful to admit that aloud, giving the credits where they were due. The tunnel was hidden behind an illusion of the rock. The spell was broken by the trinket that Talon pulled out of one of his many pockets.

“Where did you get that?” Katarina asked once the illusion vanished.

“I told you, I like my secrets to remain secrets,” the dark-haired man replied. “We have at most 10 – 15 minutes before they find out about the intrusion. So, in other words, we better hurry up,” he added, running into the dark tunnel.

With a heavy sigh, the red-haired woman followed.

It would be a challenging question for Katarina so determinate how long they had been running. All she saw was her adoptive brother that ran in front of her, leading the way. As soon as the darkness covered everything around them, he pulled out another trinket that emanated some light. It was not enough to entirely chase away the shadows, but at least it allowed them to run safely.

Soon enough, the signs of life began reaching their ears. The sounds of the heavy boots clicking against the stone-cold floor, the metal plates rustling while moving. They were close, their target was in their reach.

Out of a sudden, Talon stopped. There was a ladder at his right, leading toward the small manhole. The redhead wanted to ask some question, but ` ** _Blade’s Shadow`_** silenced her by pressing his finger to the lips. The man pointed out at the manhole. It was their next step. Within a few moments, he started climbing. Even though Talon tried to show that he was calm, it was not entirely true. His muscles were flexed, tensed. He was ready for a fight. Just a moment later, the light began to pour down from the manhole. The cover was lifted as quietly as it could be. The time seemed to freeze for the red-haired woman. Even though her brother did not say that aloud, she had been to stay in the tunnel until he would have told her that the path was clear. It was cold down there. It was ridiculous that she noticed that detail only one. Her hot breath was turning into clouds as soon as it left her mouth. She wondered how long would she had to wait. She was growing impatient again.

Soon enough, Talon gave her the sign. The path was clear. Without wasting a single moment, she climbed up the ladder. It turned out that the tunnel led to some sort of warehouse. The manhole was located between the heavy wooden cases at the very back of the magazine. The light came from the externally frozen torchlights. Without a doubt, these were the products of some sort of magic. It could be considered hypocoristically to see these there. After all, Demacian was not fond of magic. They were not the biggest fan of magic users as well.

“Where is the weapon?” Katarina asked.

“It remains to be seen,” Talon chuckled. “My source wasn’t able to tell me that in details. More than that, I found only a handful of plans for this place. As you might already expect, there is none big red cross on them, marking the place where the dagger is being stored,” he provided a few pieces of information more.

“What do we do then?” the red-haired assassin asked, sighing.

“Something that we’re best in, improvising,” the dark-haired man responded.

“I hoped you wouldn’t say that.”

**Author's Note:**

> The title as pretty much always comes from the rock song:  
> Judas Priest - Alone  
> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qkx5xrGynWY


End file.
